Welcome

Hello! My name is Shannon Taylor. I'm a long-time writer and editor from Minnesota surprised to find myself on an island in the Pacific Northwest with my husband, three younger children (the oldest is attending college in Chicago), and two dogs.

Site search

Winter Fun

Your Ideal Bookshelf / Weekend Links

A book-loving reader told me about Jane Mount, an artist who “paints portraits of people through the spines of their favorite books: the ones that changed your life, that defined who you are, that you read again and again.” Jane will paint your personal bookshelf, but she also sells prints of ready-made bookshelves that feature everything from Jane Austen to Tolkien to contemporary literature to children’s books. As I clicked through shelf after shelf of wonderful books, it was hard to pick just one to show you! Jane also sells notecard versions of the bookshelves. Wouldn’t a set of cookbook or gardening notecards be a fantastic gift?

What books would you include on your ideal bookshelf? I’d love to hear.

While I’m pondering which books to include on mine, here are some fun links for you:

I know my life would be easier if I used the slow cooker more. These 15 recipes look promising—especially the lemon garlic chicken and the carnitas.

If you’re short on space (and even if you aren’t), you might love this charming wine box garden.

Do you have fun plans for the weekend? I’m hoping to get caught up on things around the house in between baseball (Andrew has a 50-inning game on Sunday!) and the usual round of activities. I’m itching to buy the baskets of ferns for the front porch and plant the window box, but I don’t know if I dare. We have such tricky weather around here.

I also wanted to say thank you for your thoughtful comments about love notes. You reminded us that what lies at the heart of simple traditions like this is mindfulness. I thought of all of you with gratitude this morning as I tucked notes into lunchboxes.